We did a bit of this ‘n that, nothing worth mentioning…just looking and planning. Here you can see a portion of the veggie half of our garden: What is there to see then. Up front and to the left, you can see the waning brassica patch that we planted after the broad beans were finished. We harvested the last cauliflower and so that crop is history. Next time we go, that bed will have to be cleaned and raked and the winter mulching can begin. There is early mulching between the strawbs and Phacelia. Immediately in front of the brassicas, are two rows of “green manure”, Borage and Phacelia. Across the path, left you can see the Swiss chard calling for the knife, more green manure for mulching, the new strawb bed by the greenhouse. Back over this way it is the third year (next year) strawberry bed. Beyond that there is still more green manure on the beds, both close and distant. There are also veggie refuse piles awaiting the moment they can be used to mulch a bed. It is a wind-down in progress. It is sort of at a standstill at the moment because the stands of perennial flowers over in the flower garden are still green, growing and blooming. In the furthest corner is the small blueberry patch with the Limnanthes growing-away with expectations for the coming season. I am not one to say, “Hurry up and end so I can get on with things”— I am relishing every minute of the active gardening season.
@Sjoerd said: "Across the path, left you can see the Swiss chard calling for the knife,..." Suicidal Chard !! Who knew !!
Right…who knew. It feels like it has been too long between haircuts. I told it to be patient and leaf it to me.
You've still got a very good show there Sjoerd We stopped eating Chard when we found out the goats wouldn't touch it They usually eat anything so it got us wondering what was in it that would put a goat off
Zigs— Hiya. Well, you got me to thinking about the Swiss chard. I have been looking, but have not been able to find anything negative on it. I sure hope that there is nothing in the leaves that is harmful to humans. It is a staple here. I shall be a sentinel on this subject this winter. and keep my eyes and ears open.
Goats won't usually eat what they aren't used to eating like things that don grow naturally in the area. Goats do not eat "just anything" like people think they will. I bought a nanny goat at auction who would not eat grain. I set out a large tub for them and she would stand there and watch the others eat. It wasn't that she was scared to poke her head in the bowl. She just turned her nose up. One morning I came outside with a sandwich on white bread in my hand and she came running and about climbed the fence, flapping her lips trying to grab my sandwich. Lightbulb moment !! She was never fed grain, just bread. Lots of oldtimers feed day old bread from the bakery to goats, horses, sheep and cows. So, the fact that a goat won't eat something has nix to do with whether it's good eating or not.
Ta Annie, I'll tell our goat owning family about that, it was them that stopped eating the chard that we heard it from I used to have a dog that would only eat red cabbage if you sliced it, put it on a plate, put it in the fridge and take it back out again. It didn't need to be in the fridge for any length of time, just put it in, close the door and open it again was enough to make it edible
@Zigs I had a female dog that was half Dalmation and half Mini Cocker Spaniel who loved cabbage. It was a bad idea to feed it because the high calcium gave her kidney stones !! I wouldn't feed cabbage to a dog after that.
I've had kidney stones, doctor said it was more painful than childbirth. Thought he was chancing his luck saying that in front of Tetters
